Shikaki Nara
| english = | kanji = 奈良シカ輝 | romaji = Nara Shikaki | other = | image name = Yoruhisashi.png | image size = 250px | image caption = Shikaki, reincarnated | image = | float = | ref = }} * *Denial of Passage *File:100px-Nature Icon_Earth.svg.png Double Suicide Decapitation *File:100px-Nature Icon_Earth.svg.png Earth Clone * * *File:100px-Nature Icon_Earth.svg.png Hiding Like a Mole * Shadow Blade * Shadow Demon Stripe * Shadow Endgame * Shadow Flicker * Shadow Gravity Formation * Shadow Guard * Shadow Imitation * Shadow Neck Bind *Shadow Clone * * *File:100px-Nature Icon_Earth.svg.png }} Shikaki Nara (奈良シカ輝; Nara Shikaki), also known as Hisashi Wakahisa (若久久司; Wakahisa Hisashi), was a jōnin-ranked shinobi who participated in the Third Great Shinobi War as a young strategist of the Konoha military. He acts as the protagonist of the book ''A World in Tears''. On the battlefield, he was known for his unique shadow jutsu, allowing him to shift in and out of the shadows, granting him the nickname of Shadow Shikaki (影のシカ輝; Kage no Shikaki) while other accounts called him Konoha's Black Shadow (木ノ葉の黒影; Konoha no Kurokage). Shikaki's name could be found in some versions of the Bingo Book due to his battle prowess. Although his tactics and skill in battle were valued by Konoha, Shikaki was killed when the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox attacked Konohagakure, while transporting wounded shinobi from the frontlines. His name was engraved at the . Although he died, Shikaki was soon reincarnated as Hisashi Wakahisa. He was reincarnated because Shikaki had a great desire to create understanding between the villages. In doing so, peace could be more easily obtained. Biography Early years Born and raised in Konoha, Shikaki was the average young school child at the local academy. There, he was a bit of a rebel without a cause, per say. His equal treatment of absolutely everyone was highly insulting to those whom he is supposed to show respect towards, such as his teachers. The tension created did little to make Shikaki back down and change his attitude. In class, he was a moderate student. His grades were neither outstanding nor ridiculously poor, leaving him in relative anonymous stature (besides his attitude). Shikaki showed little to no interest in mastering any of the teachings of the ninja academy, although his proficiency appeared to lie in the fields of the ninjutsu tactics, with his smarts to guide him. As the graduation exam for Shikaki’s first year of the academy approached, he did practically nothing in preparation for the exam that would allow him to progress to the bottom of the real shinobi ladder: genin. His parents consoled with him to at least practice his ninjutsu for the exam, and Shikaki then only performed the techniques once or twice a week. It would seem that he would flunk his first year at the ninja academy, but Shikaki had confidence in his own abilities. The exam involved creating an excellent replica of one of the teachers through the use of the transformation technique. With that, Shikaki easily passed. Even so, he remained anonymous to those who are unfamiliar to his behavior in the graduation ceremony, accepting his new rank with a lack of celebration. With his acceptance into the chûnin rank a year later, Shikaki made attempts to reform himself as to be a more ideal role model to aspiring genin, with limited success. Those who were taught under his wing were given the emphasis of teamwork and that giving up the life of a comrade for the completion of the mission may doom them later on. Throughout the years, Shikaki successfully aided genin into the promotion to chûnin and eventually found himself promoted to tokubetsu jōnin. Shikaki was a prominent member of Clan Nara and a part of the famous Ino-Shika-Chō team. The Third Great Shinobi War At the start of the war, Shikaki was a part of the Rain Expeditionary Force sent to form the battlefront at the Land of Rain. The move proved to be a disaster: the team was ambushed en route to the Land of Fire's border and forced to retreat. Only with Shikaki's direction was the expedition force able to evade complete annihilation. When word of this reached the Third Hokage, he promoted Shikaki to the rank of lieutenant of the expedition force that he was a part of, alongside sending reinforcements to ease the loss of manpower and fully mobilizing the Konoha military and police forces in preparation for a possible invasion. Shikaki advised the commanding officer, Taiki Takahashi, to not travel into Rain territory, but to move to eliminate enemy forces staking out in the forests of the Land of Fire by the lands. The request was reluctantly agreed upon, and Shikaki's predictions proved to be true in a matter of days: the Rock were preparing their forces to invade Konoha in a covert operation, and the Third Hokage was quickly notified. Several expedition forces were mustered and they successfully drove off the enemy forces. It was at this time that Shikaki created the Shadow Flicker Technique. He recorded the creation process of the technique, though coded it as an ailment to the common cold, in case that the enemy steals the scroll it was written on and passes the knowledge of the secret clan jutsu to others. The scroll was later stored in the clan library. No method of breaking the code has been recorded. Kyūbi attack on Konoha Stationed at Konohagakure when the Nine-Tailed Fox attacked the village, Shikaki thought little of the consequences of his actions and quickly entered the battlefront, alongside many other shinobi, in fighting the monstrous demon. Since his shadow jutsu had little chance of stopping the demon fox, Shikaki used what he could to transport himself across the battlefield and evacuate the wounded. However, he was crushed underneath one of the demon's tails, instantly killing him. Shikaki's bravery was remembered alongside many of his fellow shinobi, and his name was engraved at the . It may have been Shikaki's death that led Yoshino to become more aggressive towards her husband, out of fear that Shikaku would also be killed in action. This led to Shikamaru's belief that women are troublesome. Reincarnation Although crushed by the compressed chakra that formed one of the many tails of the Demon Fox, Shikaki was reincarnated as Hisashi Wakahisa. He grew up as a typical boy, untrained in the ways of the ninja. As a young scholar, Shikaki went on a trip to Konohagakure to research declassified information about the village. He found that he already knew the layout of the village, even recognizing some individuals who were there (abeitly much older than he remember them being). His confusion was further multiplied when he knew that there was something special in a certain scroll that explained ailments to the common cold, cracking the code that it contained in a matter of minutes. From that scroll, he remembered the Shadow Flicker Technique, triggering a multitude of memories, including his name in his previous life. However, even though his memory was mostly restored, Shikaki's body was not capable of performing the advanced techniques that he knew in his previous life. After further research, he understood that he was reincarnated with a purpose. With this realization, Shikaki left the village and began retraining himself in the ways of the shinobi, so that he could prepare himself to complete his goal. After training for two years, Shikaki began traveling the world. Although he remembered much of his past, Shikaki could not recall the reason for his reincarnation. He interviewed people of his past in attempts to obtain such information, though he had little success. Yorudō While at Shukuba Town, he encountered a woman about the same age as himself. He felt strangely connected to her, even when she was aided by a walking cane. When she was knocked over by a burly man, on accident, Shikaki instinctively grabbed her arm to save her from falling. It was then that Shikaki met Haruka. The two felt attracted towards each other, agreeing to travel together for their own reasons. After talking with Haruka for a while, Shikaki felt that she had something that he needed to know. He asked her off-handedly what she would do if she had the power to change the world in an instant. Her reply, "create understanding," clicked his past memory. Shikaki remembered that he wanted to create a world in which villages understood each other. In doing so, war could be avoided in the future. However, Shikaki realized that he would not be able to undertake this goal on his own, forming the Yorudō in order to bring himself closer to universal understanding. Yorudō quickly became one of the largest underground entities in the world, due to its unique method of obtaining information. Personality and traits Shikaki was a firm believer of the Will of Fire, more so than any other religion or belief. He also believed that were overrated and used to strike fear into the less fortunate ninja. Instead, Shikaki held to the belief that it was the warrior's will to fight for his beliefs that enables victory. Most of the time, Shikaki maintained a stern expression: he disliked the prospect of acting irresponsibly or placing those he cared about in unnecessary danger. He treated everyone equally except his enemies, who he then looks down upon, including that of those whom he was supposed to garner respect towards. He disliked, although attempted to find some balance with, the prospect of ninja being tools of a nation; he preferred to be his own boss, which Shikaki took for granted when he created the Yorudō as Hisashi. A lack of diversity of techniques that Shikaki utilizes was offset by his ingenuity of their flexible uses. His greatest desire was to create understanding between the different countries of the world. In doing so, peaceful resolutions would be much easier to obtain. Shikaki was reincarnated for this reason, though it was believed that he would die after achieving that desire. He likened the daunting task of teaching understanding to reasoning why one would carry a broken sword. Powers and abilities Shikaki was considered a genius, being able to create the Shadow Flicker Technique on his own. The Shadow Flicker was considered to be Shikaki's signature technique and was what made him a dangerous opponent to fight, due to the versatile uses that the technique offered. However, it was over shadowed by its parent technique, the , and never caught on because of its chakra requirements. Shikaki's skill in the Shadow Flicker is great enough to minimalize the chakra he consumes to utilize the ability. Ninjutsu Shikaki has been known to combine his shadow techniques with the in order to disable his opponents. Of his shadow jutsu, Shikaki is best known for the use of his own Shadow Flicker Technique. He also deceives his opponents through the use of techniques such as the and . Shikaki was known to utilize Summoning: Weaponry to summon a metal staff as a weapon. Taijutsu Shikaki carried a broken sword, which was once used to channel chakra. It was previously owned by a from the who Shikaki met during his travels, after Shikaki's reincarnation. He and the samurai fought each other, due to conflicting objectives, eventually leading to the samurai's death. However, the samurai mentioned his desire to create a understanding, peaceful world before he died, which touched Shikaki. He kept the sword, although broken in the duel, as a keepsake to the samurai's wishes. Even without the weapon, Shikaki was skilled in hand-to-hand combat. He preferred to use his taijutsu to supplement his ninjutsu abilities, to give him an athletic edge that many skilled ninjutsu users lacked. Yorudō As Hisashi Wakahisa, Shikaki massed an enormous underground intelligence network, the Yorudō, making him one of the biggest entities in the underground realm. His fame, or notoriety, in the field presented him with a multitude of allies and enemies, each with their own agenda. Even when he was 17, Shikaki's network of intelligence was enough to attract the attention of the of the time. Shikaki also created and taught high ranking officers of the Yorudō the concept of Fūrinkazan. Appearances * Naruto: The Third War: A World in Tears * Shikaki Nara vs. Minkai Zokatakei (non-canon) * The Exchange (non-canon) * Embers of War (GSWW) (mentioned only) * Βattle of Kikyō Pass (GSWW) Behind the scenes Shikaki's name has been, indecisively, been swapped between Shikaki and Shikami, the latter being a play on phonetics (since kami refers to something of divine proportions). The former was chosen over the latter, since there is nothing divine about Shikaki. Shikaki was derived from shika, a presumably common prefix to a member of the Nara clan, and ki, meaning radiant. Although there were previous separate articles for Shikaki and Hisashi Wakahisa, it was planned from the start that Shikaki and Hisashi were to be the same person, to follow a rebirth motif found in another user's story. If Shikaki had a databook section about him, it would include the following information: *Shikaki's hobbies include playing shōgi, xiangqi and chess. *He doesn't want to fight anyone. *It is unknown how many missions that Shikaki has completed, as many of them were classified during the Third Great War. *His favorite food are clams, while he hates bread. Category: Alternate Naruto World Category: Articles by LaviBookman Category: A World in Tears Category: Characters Category: Male Category:Naruto: The Third War Category:Yorudō